History
![Picture](/uploads/1/5/0/2/15029652/7726980.jpg)
- Billabong founded on Australia’s Gold Coast in 1973 by Gordon Merchant (a passionate surfer) and his partner, Rena.
- The business began with them designing board shorts at home, creating them on the kitchen table and selling them at the local surf shop.
- Local surfers loved the shorts created, as they were designed with a unique triple stitching technique (invented by Gordon himself). This design made the shorts strong and durable as well as fashionable
- He also created a specially designed surfboard with a tucked under edge, sold it to Michael Peterson and Rabbit Bartholomew and earned them both a spot in the world’s top surfers. This created fantastic publicity.
- The Business grew, and by the 8os Billabong was licensed to sell their goods in many places, including New Zealand, Japan, South Africa and Europe
- It finally became a public company in Australia in 2000
- Billabong earned its place as a highly respectable company, up until recently…
-